Show Me a Smile
by XxNarutoFanGurlxX
Summary: She spent four days in the Memorial Gardens with Kakashi. The first day was oddly silent. The second day, he thanked her for her company. The third day, the both of them shared an awkward conversation. The fourth day, he gave her a very unexpected gift.


Summary: She spent four days in the Memorial Gardens with an old friend, Kakashi. The first day was oddly silent. The second day, he thanked her for her company. The third day, the both of them shared an awkward conversation. Finally, the fourth day, he smiled and gave her a present that she never expected.

One-shot story - Kakashi Hatake & Sakura Haruno

Disclaimer - I don't own Naruto at all

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><p><strong><em>Show Me a Smile<em>**

**_One-Shot Fic_**

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><p><em>Day One<em>

Sakura Haruno just happened to be passing by the Memorial Gardens—she usually takes the path when she's on her way to visit the watering hole on the outskirts of the Hidden Leaf Village; it was the only place where she could drown out her sorrows. It was a normal and peaceful evening, but all grew eerie when she spotted the familiar shade of silver hiding by the Memorial Stone.

There he was, Kakashi Hatake, Great Copy Ninja, standing with his shoulders slouched by the obsidian statue. He didn't seem to be too enthralled with the sight of the memorial, considering that his single eye was drooping more than normally. He appeared to be battered and worn down to the bone, not physically, but mentally and emotionally. And the way he's acting convinced her that he was truly scarred. He was suffering and she couldn't help but to go and comfort him.

Fleetingly, she strode through the arched gateway and made her way past the delicate flowerbeds. But as she grew closer to her former mentor, she slowly began to see the growing dark aura within him. She was stunned to feel such hatred radiating off of him, mostly terrified, but she didn't let her little fear get in her way. He's not only her sensei, he's not only her comrade—he is also her closest friend. So forcing herself upon this dangerous decision, she shuffled to his side and stood still beside him, wondering just how to begin a conversation. She could always start with a simple 'Hello', or maybe even perhaps a 'What's wrong?'. Although, she didn't want to be too demanding of his information. It would be too rude of her to ask of his personal life; he has kept a low profile of himself ever since he met her, Naruto Uzumaki, and Sasuke Uchiha when they were genin. Then when two additional members came along after Sasuke's departure—Yamato and Sai—he became even more silent than usual. Three years later, when the team separated due to their busy schedules, he absolutely changed. He was no longer a talkative and teasing man, nor perverted. He even stopped reading Jiraiya-sama's Icha Icha novels. Actually, everybody became different. The difference was what kept all Team Seven members apart.

Curiously, the pink-haired kunoichi momentarily glared at him. She was expecting some sort of a reaction, but he didn't do anything. At the moment, he didn't appear to be one of those highly-active ninja. He was merely gazing at the Memorial stone, most likely honoring the dead, maybe even his friends. If she could remember correctly, a couple months back, rumors spread around the village and it was said that Kakashi once had two close comrades—the new generation weren't aware of their names and the older generation didn't bother to speak about it—and was taught by the one and only Fourth Hokage, Minato Namikaze. She didn't want to believe the given information, but a part of her was convinced that it was true. The fact that he was always down and gloomy told her that something terrible happened to him in the past. The rumors…they could be the truth.

Just then, her mouth opened to say something but he suddenly trudged away, his hands shoved into his pockets and his head hanging low. Sadly, she observantly watched him depart the Memorial Gardens. The great amount of sorrow he was expressing pained her extremely. She never thought in her life that she would feel so bad for someone. She wasn't similar to those ninja who continuously mourned over the dead. Yes, she once was a broken, childish girl who cried over most things, but after realizing what a burden she was being, she forced herself to become like those hard-rock people. Like Kakashi.

All of a sudden, Kakashi turned to look over his shoulder and she spotted his lone onyx eye. His spectacle gleamed in an odd way and she swore she saw something flare within his heart. What she saw was…gratefulness.

Sakura couldn't help but to reveal a small smile.

**. . .**

_Day Two_

She was unusually drawn to him. She came back to the gardens in hope of seeing him again, and he was there.

Carefully and gently, she placed a bundle of flowers varying from tulips to lilies on the base of the statue. From the corner of her jade eyes, she saw Kakashi giving her a skeptical glare. She dismissed his peculiar action and aligned herself with him again, a fair distance set between the both of them.

The atmosphere developed a somewhat uneasy breeze that brought disturbance to the silent patches of graves a few minutes later. It blew her bangs out of the way, but her hair irritated her skin when in brushed against her cheeks. Same with the Copy Ninja; whenever his hair was blown out of the way, he would wince slightly or maybe even shudder. She could understand why he would be so uncomfortable in these conditions, considering that they suited his sorrowful emotions and thoughts. She too would be bothered if the weather suddenly accustomed to her feelings.

Feeling a tad bit bored, she cocked her head to the side to glance at him. His face was lifted to the sky and an outline of a frown was growing visible on the fabric of his mask. He was observing the flying flock of birds with practiced nonchalance, his eye slightly watery. As if he was too becoming uninterested of the things around them, he let his shoulders sag and resumed his exchange of glances with the inanimate object—the statue. He seemed to be broken. She just wished that she could pick up the pieces and put them back together, but what exactly would hold those pieces? Kindness? Care? She wouldn't know because she has never saved anyone from an emotional predicament.

Sighing heavily, she settled her petite hand on his shoulder. He averted his attention to her and she asked, "Are you okay, Kakashi?"

He nodded and released a small breath. "Yes," he replied bluntly, "Thank you."

Her eyebrows skyrocketed. "For what?"

His gloved hand suddenly moved on top of hers, his fingers tangling with her own. He held her tightly as he guided her arm back to her side and murmured, "Thank you for being there for me."

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_Day Three_

Sakura sighed into her cupped hands and felt her skin moisten to her breath. A sudden heat overcame her and warmed her to the point where it seemed as if she was boiling. It was a cold breezy evening that didn't suit the regular summer weather, but at least the sun was still peeking out from above the clouds. She was wearing a white tank top beneath a black button-up shirt that had sleeves that fell to her elbows. She also had a pair of light blue shorts on, along with tennis shoes. They were casual clothing for a day without important occasions that were surprisingly suited well to windy weather. She received the clothes from Kakashi as her seventeenth birthday present, but that was almost four years ago. It was still extremely important to her.

Speaking of the man…

The front door was suddenly pulled open, revealing none other than the jounin. Immediately, she stood up from the porch steps and greeted him with a slight bow. He didn't quite react the way that she thought he would though. He was only standing still, his single eye slightly wide from shock. And when she looked closely at his mask, she saw an outline of his open mouth, a circular 'O'. Perhaps she jumped on him a little bit too soon…

"Sakura…" His voice grew from stern to cracked as he saw her face drown in sorrow. He knew why she was here.

Without further ado, the two ninja began their ten minute journey to the Memorial Gardens. It was a silent and uneasy trip yet it also felt peaceful and nice. It wasn't as horrible as she thought it would be. The jounin actually respected the silence, like her, and enjoyed the natural views they received when the chance came around the corner. Now that she thought about it, they are both alike in some ways. They both enjoyed silence, they both enjoy romance novels—although what he read was more in the area of 'sexual action'. Another similarity is that the two of them like eating sweets, although he rarely shows that side of him. Hatake is a very complicated being…

The abrupt shaking of her head interrupted her flow of thoughts. Returning to reality, she realized that they have arrived and were now standing in front of the statue.

The kunoichi looked to her right to find him silently mourning, his eye intently concentrated on a particular thing and his two hands clasped together into a ball. Following his direct line of sight, she found out that he was specifically staring at two of the names engraved onto the base of the memorial: Minato Namikaze and Obito Uchiha. The name Minato was familiar but she has never heard of Obito Uchiha. No one spoke of a figure such as Obito and she couldn't recall having to see any death or medical record of this ninja. But then again, this person could be one of Kakashi's 'closest friends' from his childhood. Although she just can't assume her theory to be correct. She wanted to ask, but would it be right if she did? Would it be invading or intruding on his personal life?

Shyly, she quietly asked, "Who are you honoring?" She nervously began to fidget with her fingers.

He gazed at her and dryly replied, "Comrades. The fallen."

A frown tugged at her lips. "Specifically who?"

"Hm," he hummed rhythmically, "Obito Uchiha and Minato Namikaze."

"Oh…" So she was correct after all.

"Obito…he was a great friend of mine," he sighed sorrowfully, "He was strong and powerful. He didn't have obscure strength, but he had the will to go on. A strong Will of Fire, in this case. Right now, he may sound intelligent and advanced…" The Copy Ninja faked a chuckle and ran his fingers through his hair. "But really, the boy was a total doofus. He would always goof off on missions and go with his own battle tactic. He wasn't the smartest guy out there, but he was fun to hang around. Despite his stupidity and stubborn behavior, he was one excellent teammate. He almost fits Naruto's image, now that I think about it." He paused shortly to gather his lost words and thoughts. "Naruto brings me to Minato, the Fourth Hokage, which you probably already know of. He was an amazing sensei. He had it all: intelligence, strength, will, hope, and a heart…" His voice trailed off into a silent whisper.

Sakura was taken by surprise. "W-Why are you telling me…all of this?"

"I trust you a lot, Sakura. I'm telling you about myself because I can actually trust you with this information. You're different than the others. You're unique."

Her incredulous glare eventually softened into a joyful gaze. "You are too…"

**. . .**

_Day Four_

She lifted her face to the sky to only feel the rain pound against her skin. The day wasn't a very bright one which disappointed her greatly. She was hoping for the sun to peak out from above the darkening clouds but it never did. She couldn't exactly explain why she wanted the weather to suddenly change from horrible to beautiful, but she could say one thing: Seeing a person who wasn't exactly their normal-self was discomforting. Being around a person who developed into someone who they are not is terrifying, horrible, frightening, and especially nightmarish.

"Sakura, are you alright?"

Without turning to face him, she answered, "I'm not my happiest, but yes, I'm fine."

He almost gawked as he tried catching her gaze. Failing miserably to avert her attention to him, he asked, "May I ask you a question?" When she nodded, he continued. "Why have you been accompanying me here in the Memorial Gardens? It is unusual for someone like you to try to support me." He sounded very curious at the moment, but he didn't intended for it to be so.

Silence shortly consumed the conversation.

"I haven't seen you for almost a year and when I saw you standing in this very spot, I was glorified to see you once again," she explained bitterly, "But after taking a step closer to you, I realized just how much you've changed over the time we haven't spoke to each other. I noticed an unusual sad aura within you, Kakashi, and I was determined to help you. Assist you and your needs. I find it impossible to do so though because you've changed so much…" Of what was a controlled and cool voice grew into a small whimper.

He smiled. He finally smiled. His single eye crinkled in that joyful familiar way and she spotted an outline of his grin forming on his mask. For once, she felt lively.

Kakashi carefully cupped her cheek and placed a chastise kiss on her forehead. His masked lips slowly moved to her ear and she heard him whisper, "My emotions are what have changed, Sakura. My personality, my looks, my dreams…I still have all of them." He paused momentarily to stare at her directly. "I was afraid, sad, and unsure. That is the only reason why I came here to the Memorial Gardens—to think."

Quietly, she murmured, "Afraid?"

"Yes," he replied with a chuckle, "because I didn't know if you loved me as much as I loved you."

She couldn't help but to wrap him in her embrace.

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><p>The End!<p>

Hope you enjoyed!

Reviews are Appreciated


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